Des Moines, Iowa — Progress Iowa will hold a rally on Wednesday, August 28 at the state capitol in opposition to Governor Branstad’s politicization of women’s health care and his partnership with anti-abortion activists and the Iowa Board of Medicine to eliminate access to women’s reproductive health care.
The Iowa Board of Medicine is considering a proposed rule change that would ban the state’s telemedicine delivery system for medication abortion. Telemedicine is a safe and common practice, which has been in place since 2008 in Iowa. In 2010, the Iowa Board of Medicine reviewed the rules governing the telemedicine delivery system for medication abortion, and upheld the current system. Since then, Governor Branstad has filled the entire board with his hand-picked replacements. And recently, the Des Moines Register uncovered an email between Governor Branstad’s staff and an activist coordinating a petition to the Board requesting that the rules be reviewed and changed.
“Governor Branstad is proving that politicians make lousy doctors,” said Matt Sinovic, executive director of Progress Iowa. “Politics should never dictate health care, but the governor keeps injecting himself into personal decisions that should remain between a woman and her doctor. And his administration’s partnership with anti-abortion activists in an orchestrated political attack with the Board of Medicine is shameful.”
WHAT: Iowa Women Deserve Better Rally
WHEN: Wednesday, August 28, 12:00 PM
WHERE: Iowa State Capitol, West Steps
CONFIRMED SPEAKERS: Rep. Marti Anderson, Sen. Jack Hatch, Rep. Tyler Olson, Rep. Beth Wessel-Kroeschell
The “Iowa Women Deserve Better” rally is being co-sponsored by Planned Parenthood Voters of Iowa, AFSCME Iowa Council 61, Iowa Federation of Labor AFL-CIO, and One Iowa.
